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Emily Merchant
Lady Emily Merchant was a woman originally from Victorian London, who became lost through the Anomalies for years before eventually reaching the present, where she became involved with the Anomaly Research Centre. Biography Background Emily was born in 1840, and lived in London. (Episode 4.3) Throughout her early adulthood, Emily was apparently unhappy with her own world, feeling that she didn't fit in due to being too fierce and rebellious for the constraints of Victorian ladyship.http://primeval.intheirsandbox.co.uk/characters/emily-merchant.php In 1867, Emily's father greedily and selfishly forced her to marry Lord Henry Merchant, who didn't love her and whom she barely even knew, so that her family could have access to Merchant's wealth and power. (Episode 4.6) Just after Emily and Henry were married, Emily came across an Anomaly and went through, becoming lost in time. (Episode 4.6) Emily met and joined the Time Tribe on their travels through the Anomalies in search of Anomalies back to their own time periods. (Episode 4.3) She would spend three years travelling to different eras in the past with the Time Tribe, (Episode 4.5) becoming good friends with Charlotte Cameron and also knowing Ethan Dobrowski; before the Time Tribe came to the Tree Creepers' Cretaceous home, where they captured and cooked the Creepers as food. (Episode 4.3) Episode 4.3 While living in the Cretaceous hills, her and Ethan Dobrowski's friend Charlotte Cameron, was dying of an infection. They split off from the main group of fifteen, and went through an anomaly to the Present to look for medicine, unfortunately Charlotte died shortly afterwards, this devastated Ethan and he blamed Emily. Their grief was interrupted by arrival of the ARC team. Ethan hid in the Theatre whilst Emily escaped through the Anomaly and Matt Anderson gave chase, assuming she’s about to be stranded in a different time. Matt caught up with her, but she was knocked during an attack from an Arboreal Dinosaur, and Matt took her back to the present. With no clue as to her identity, Matt took her to hospital. The ARC team locked the Anomaly, but what they didn't realise is that two arboreal dinosaurs had come through and were still on the loose. Emily escaped from her room and overheard Becker saying that Emily would be contained at the ARC for various reasons. Matt caught up with her outside and learned the truth about her – she’s not from this place or time. They realises a creature is loose and Emily agreed to help on the condition Matt lets her back through the Anomaly. Whilst they tracked the creature through the high rise buildings of the city, Abby and Becker discovered another creature still at large in the theatre. Emily and Matt were forced to confront the creature on the roof and as they attempted to capture it, Matt was cornered by the creature, leaving Emily to save his life. They tied it up but the creature escaped and attempted to attack them, failing and falling off the building, killing itself. With both creatures taken care of and the anomaly closed, Matt realised he can’t take Emily back to the ARC. After enlisting the help of a reluctant Abby, he promised her he’ll help her get back when the next anomaly opens. Until then she’ll stay secretly at his flat. Little did they know they were being watched from the shadows by Ethan, now intent on revenge; he blamed Emily for the death of his beloved Charlotte. Episode 4.4 After spending the night in the flat, Emily attempted to sneak out, but Matt caught her. She was insistent in looking for Ethan but Matt had a creature incursion to deal with. Matt asked Emily to draw a picture of Ethan whilst he was away, and when he came back they'd start looking for him. This left her vulnerable, and Ethan soon arrived and took her. After dealling with the incursion, Matt arrived and discovered that she was missing, he also found her drawing of Ethan. Episode 4.5 With nowhere to go, Matt had to inform Lester. Lester and Jess looked over CCTV footage of Ethan taking Emily. As Emily had an ARC tracking unit, Lester guided Matt to the Tower Hill Cemeterywhere Charlotte's family were buried. He was determined she would suffer the same fate as his beloved Charlotte, and so planned to bury her alive in the family mausoleum. Matt managed to get her just in time to save her life, but despite his best efforts, Ethan still escaped. Matt’s flat was no longer safe; he couldn't be sure Emily will be protected there. There was only one place left to go: the ARC. Episode 4.6 When at the ARC with Matt, she talked over the Ethan situation with Lester, who suggested that Emily return to her home, but Matt insisted she stay, as part of his plan to use her as bait to catch Ethan. When a new Anomaly was detected, Matt took Emily with him to the Stately Home. Emily was bored waiting in the car and went inside and walked in on Jenny Lewis introducing her fiancé and tried to offer her help with the anomaly, but Matt kept her from revealing too much. Jenny offered for Emily to stay with her, and despite Matt's objection, she agreed. During the night she went for a walk with Matt, and he admitted to her that he had already known of the ARC and Anomalies before he joined and was trying to figure out what happened with the Anomalies, but doesn't say more despite her asking. At the wedding he notices Emily's ring, meaning she was married, but she refused to say anything. During the wedding Hyaenodons began attacking the guests, and Emily helped Abby contain one inside a van, but didn't know what to do when Abby tried to give her a high five. Afterwards Emily tells Matt that her marriage meant nothing as it was arranged by her father who had money in an attempt to get in with people whose names were well known. Matt seemed relieved with the explaination and decided to take her to Gideon. Emily was making tea and by the time she got outside Gideon had died, unaware that Matt had agreed to use her to capture Ethan and then walk away, as he claimed she means nothing to him. Matt was weeping, and Emily asked who he was, and Matt told her that Gideon was his father. Episode 4.7 Emily was held at the ARC until Ethan was captured, with the possibility of living in the present and a new identity being an open option. When an anomaly opened in a prison, Connor scanned it with his new Dating Calculator, leading to the conclusion that the anomaly led to 1867, the year Emily left. However, a Terror Bird came out of the anomaly, seemingly proving the calculator wrong. When Matt informed Emily that the anomaly didn't lead to her home, she was relieved with the news. Matt and Emily later went through the evidence on Ethan, Emily shown off a self-powered radio tuned into the anomalies frequency. Realising Ethan could be on his way to the prison using this method, Matt started making his way there, asking Emily to stay at the ARC. Ethan, who was revealed to be Patrick Quinn after a series of events involving the recently returned Danny Quinn, was captured and brought to the ARC. After Matt realised Patrick wasn't a suspect in what he was investigating, he turned his frustration on Emily, who tried to confort him. She questioned how Matt was so certain what will happen with the anomalies will actually happen. Connor and Abby soon revealed that there was anomaly to 1867 in the prison, and the confusion was a result of it opening up on the same spot as another anomaly. When Emily found that there was a way home, she wasn't sure she should go back, having became a different person since she first left, but also didn't fit in in the present either. Patrick escaped and triggered an alarm, drawing out Emily, whom Patrick used as a hostage before Matt and Danny took off after him. Emily pleaded for Patrick to stay and accept help, but he went through an anomaly and left Emily to the mercy of the Terror Bird which he had set free. However she managed to knock it out as Matt and Danny arrived. Danny decided to go after him, and left Matt and Emily a warning that Philip wasn't to be trusted as it seemed he did anomaly research with Helen and to tell the others. Emily considered going back to her own time, seeing that there was no chance for her and Matt, unless he asked her to stay. She had figured out that he came through an anomaly of his own from the future. Matt explained that the future earth is sterile and unable to support life with people being forced to live underground, and that he and others (including his father) were sent back to several times to see if they can find out what happens with the anomalies, as someone manipulates them and causes the damage. Matt asked her to go back, knowing he can't put anything else ahead of that. Emily bid her goodbye to Matt and went through the anomaly, which closed behind her. Episode 5.3 Emily returned to her husband, Henry Merchant, claiming that she didn't remember anything about her disappearance. However her time away had caused her to change her views on society, and this strained their already fragile relationship. A year after returning she became deeply concerned that a killer, "Spring-Heeled Jack" is actually a creature due to the strange mutilations of the victims. Her husband, Henry, meanwhile, denies this and frequently shows a lack of love or interest for her and sees her as little more than an improvement on his reputation. She kept from him the fact that she set out to stop the killings, and in turn the creature, by herself, and armed herself in a protective disguise which some came to believe was the look of "Spring-Heeled Jack." After finally locating its nest, Emily accidentally caused Matt to miss the raptor with his EMD. When she revealed herself, the pair were relieved to see each other again, and Matt revealed he had come for the raptor after accidentally sending it back earlier. Matt tries to warn Emily about her fate, but she refuses to listen. Later, Henry discovers them and orders Emily to come outside with him and Matt holds Henry at gunpoint with an EMD and tells Emily what Henry will do to her. Matt is then knocked out by Henry's doctor, and Emily tied up and taken aboard a carriage to Bedlam Asylum. On the way, though, the carriage is attacked by the raptor, killing Henry's doctor, crashing the carriage and knocking Henry out. Emily tries to wake Henry up, when he grabs Emily, only for her to knock him back out and leave the carriage. When she checks to see if the doctor is ok, though, a man arrives and mistakes Emily for Spring-Heeled Jack. Matt arrived, and Emily decided they needed to go back to the raptor's nest and wait for it there, saying that they'll do things her way, as they are in her time. Then the town try to chase and kill them. Matt and Emily are attacked by the raptor, and split up. They defeat the raptor when Emily finds Matt's EMD and knocks it out. They then carried it back to the anomaly and Matt asked Emily to come back with him but she ignores him and drops the raptor down the stairs, through the anomaly. Emily says she belongs in 1868, and shall move abroad, but Matt says that she belongs at the ARC now, but she refuses. After Matt went through, Henry arrived, pointing a gun at Emily, believing her to be the killer. He ordered her to come with him to pay for her crimes, but she finally stood up to him and decided to go through the anomaly. However Henry shoots her as she does, and is saved by a part of her outfit. Henry followed her through and put a gun to Matt's head. Once again, he tried ordering Emily to come with him and face justice, but she refused. When the security alarm goes off and wakes up the raptor, it attacks and kills Henry, and Emily is horrified. Later Emily comes with the rest of the team back to the ARC and is greeted by Jess, who had hoped Emily would be back. Episode 5.4 Emily was present as Matt learned Connor's hard drive contained information on anomalies, and that he had created his own anomaly in the ARC. When a swarm of Future Beetles invaded the ARC and forced it into lockdown, Becker ordered Emily to leave with Matt's encouragement, however she instead remained behind and found some pesticides for the team to use against the beetles. When the plan failed she helped Jess and Becker in trying to locate medicine for the former when she had an alergic reaction to a beetle bite. Unable to get Jess outside and to a hospital, they were forced to get into the ARC's panic room as Connor manipulated his anomaly into emitting energy to wipe out the beetles. Episode 5.5 )]]Emily was present as Matt admitted his mission to everyone, and was worried whether or not Matt was supposed to stop Philip's machine as an anomaly alert went off. She went with Abby and Becker to the location where a Tyrannosaurus was on the loose, they searched for the creature and arrived after Matt had brought it down. When Jess informed the team that several anomalies were opening all over the world as part of the convergence, she went with Matt to the New Dawn facility. Arriving at the New Dawn facility, they were attacked by a flock of Anurognathus, forcing them inside, only to be confronted by April Leonard and some guards. However she and Matt escaped while the Anurognathus entered the building and killed the guards. While Matt went off on his own, Emily and Abby covered Connor as they were attacked by more guards, and she was knocked out. When she recovered, she met up with Abby and watched as New Dawn activated and the anomaly dragged Connor through, and kept Abby from going after him. Episode 5.6 Abby pleaded for Emily to allow her through, though Matt arrived and decided to go through himself. Abby eventually followed as Emily decided to distract the guards, who eventually captured her. She was brought before Philip, who wasn't happy that she and the others were distracting him from his work. He ordered her to be contained, and Emily was left in a storage room, her pleas to the guards falling on deaf ears. When the whole facility shook because of the anomaly, Emily was knocked out by a falling shelf. After awakening, she managed to free herself and met up with Matt, and the two escaped as Philip caused the building to implode. The anomaly remained, and the team went back to the ARC to retrieve Connor's anomaly. However the ARC had been invaded by Mutated Future Predators, and Emily attempted to help in fighting back. When the team arrived back at New Dawn, Emily was afraid that Matt was going to disappear because he would succeed in his mission or die if he didn't. Matt kissed her goodbye and drove into the anomaly, which became unstable and closed. Becker held the crying Emily until Matt reappeared, having somehow survived. Later the team went to prepare for another anomaly, and Emily asked if Matt was alright after finding him in the hall, apparently alone. Alternate timeline In the initial timeline, Henry had Emily successfully committed to Bedlam Asylum, where she spent the rest of her life. (Episode 5.2) This was apparently negated from the timeline following Matt's interference in 1868 which resulted in Emily escaping incarceration and returning to the present with him. (Episode 5.3) Personality Due to her survival experience against creatures from her travels through the Anomalies, Emily was very experienced at handling, fighting off and capturing creatures, and was composed, fast-thinking, resourceful, level-headed and intuitive in the face of danger. She could be strong, elusive, sneaky and fast-moving, in different human and prehistoric environments, both against creatures and against other people who tried to stop her for whatever reason. However, Emily had also been conditioned by years far from her home time and fighting for survival in prehistoric worlds to be adverse to and suspicious of human time periods and human contact, to the point that she initially practically preferred to stay away from human eras and stick to the creatures' dangerous home times. Upon her first encounter with the ARC team when she came to the present, Emily initially considered it her responsibility to find Patrick and leave the present to reunite with the Time Tribe as soon as possible, then after a time with the ARC in the modern world, she decided to return to her own time and place when an Anomaly back to her world was finally found. After returning to Victorian London, Emily had initially, despite clearly not belonging in that world and being put down and mistreated by her husband, tried to insist that she could and would stay in her home time. However, after meeting Matt again and helping him with the Spring-Heeled Jack Raptor, Emily finally brought herself to stand up to Henry and to accept that while the Victorian was the time she was born into, the 21st century was the world that she belonged in. As well as being toughened and brave, Emily was also very intelligent, standoffish, defiant, stubborn and independent, and she did not like being thought of as non-essential or liable. She preferred to follow her own thoughts, tactics and ideas in situations, and she would not hesitate to nonchalantly ignore orders and the chain of command if leaders' or military personnel's protocols came into conflict with her own strategy or when she thought that the chain of command was being less effective in its course of action. Relationships Abby Maitland Abby and Emily seemed to have a very good, sisterly friendship, and they worked well side-by-side in the field at both covering each-other and fighting off the creatures. Abby tried to help Emily out with living in the present, teaching her modern habits and quirks such as high-fives, and Emily in turn showed concern and care for Abby when she was upset or distressed. Henry Merchant Emily and Henry's marriage was solely one of convenience arranged by Emily's family; Henry had no real love for or interest in Emily, considering her little more than a mere improvement upon his own reputation, and wanting her actions and even her thoughts to obey him. Emily herself hated Henry for his loveless and misogynistic treatment of her in comparison to how she'd been treated among the ARC, and only put up with him out of determination to stay in her time. After Henry tried to have Emily committed to a mental asylum for life behind her back and after she'd been forced to realise that she no longer belonged in the Victorian, Emily finally stood up to her husband, refusing to let him treat her the way he did and choose her fate anymore. When Henry was killed minutes later, Emily seemed stricken with shock but not grief at his death. Hilary Becker After Emily first came to the present, Becker at first wanted her isolated and locked up to ensure she couldn't harm anyone because of how she wasn't from the 21st century, due to which Becker wasn't trusted by Abby and Matt with knowledge of Emily's whereabouts until after Emily was kidnapped by Patrick. After Emily became a part of the ARC team though, Becker apparently accepted her as a fellow team-member and a friend; although he could still be irked by her stubborn lack of adherence to the chain of command. Jess Parker Jess was a highly thoughtful and caring friend to Emily at the ARC, impulsively giving her what she thought would be good news when it came up. When Emily returned to the present to stay after finding she didn't belong in her home time anymore, Jess was glad and thrilled to have Emily back. Matt Anderson Matt and Emily were very close, and were able to closely relate with each-other because of how they were both people in the present who hadn't come from that time. Initially after Matt and Emily's very first encounter, Emily didn't want Matt's help because she thought him being with her would only either get in her way or get him killed, while Matt was interested in and protective of Emily. Over time though, particularly after Matt narrowly saved Emily from being buried alive by Patrick, Emily became more accepting of Matt's help and care, and the two grew very close and eventually fell in love. However, Matt still refused to put his feelings for Emily before his mission to save the future, which Emily accepted and which led to her choosing to leave Matt to return to her own time. When Matt and Emily met again when Matt entered the Victorian, Matt tried to save her from her fate to be incarcerated by Henry, and indirectly succeeded, leading Emily to return to the present, this time to stay, and rejoin him and the ARC. By the time when the ARC team stopped New Dawn, when Emily feared Matt would cease to exist by succeeding, Matt kissed her without hesitation or shock, showing that the two had accepted and embraced their feelings for each-other. Patrick Quinn Emily spent three years travelling through the Anomalies with Patrick in the Time Tribe. She seemed to care about Patrick as a friend and fellow Anomaly traveller, regularly trying to calm and comfort him and to try and convince him to accept others' friendship and help in regards to is murderous tendencies. But Emily also recognised how dangerous and murderous Patrick was, regarding him as a large-scale danger to people's lives without Charlotte to control him, and greatly fearing what he could do to her if he couldn't be reasoned with or brought back under control. Emily was shocked and horrified to discover she, and everyone else she'd travelled with, actually had no idea who Patrick really was when Patrick's car-driving knowledge revealed that he was actually originally from the present. Appearances Canonical *Episode 4.3 *Episode 4.4 *Episode 4.5 *Episode 4.6 *Episode 4.7 *Episode 5.2 *Episode 5.3 *Episode 5.4 *Episode 5.5 *Episode 5.6 Trivia *Despite the ARC making a military background compulsory, Emily joined in Series 5, and had helped the team earlier in Series 4. Emily may be an exception, due to military styles in the 19th century not being the same as in 2011. **It's possible Emily has never been officially cleared for field work. Her appearances all either took place in the ARC (5.4) or in an unofficial capacity (5.3, 5.5, 5.6). *Emily was the very last person to speak in Primeval. *Emily appears to have some level of basic medical knowledge,as seen when she helps Becker tend to Jess after the latter had been bitten by a beetle she was allergic to. References Merchant, Emily Category:Females Merchant, Emily Merchant, Emily Category:Recurring characters Merchant, Emily Category:Alternate era characters Merchant, Emily Category:Anomaly personnel Category:Team members Merchant, Emily